wedding announcements

Imagine sending your wedding announcement to your local paper only to have it and your $25 publication fee returned.

Newspaper readers in Lancaster, PA were up in arms when Lancaster Newpapers Inc. refused to print a gay couple's engagement announcement. In response, the company changed its policy to become fully inclusive of same-sex relationship milestones. It is at least the second newspaper this week to do so.

After refusing to publish a lesbian couple's wedding announcement, the Macon Telegraph has changed its policy on wedding announcements to become fully inclusive of same-sex couples.

Though the Northwest Arkansas Times has yet to formally announce a policy change, the paper is now devoting time and space in its opinion pages to local readers who are asking them to treat all loving and committed relationships equally.

The Northwest Arkansas Times refuses to print the engagement announcement of a gay couple, citing state law which does not legally recognize the marriages of loving and committed gay and lesbian couples. In similar situations, other newspapers have opted to stand in favor of inclusivity and against discrimination. A new Change.org petition encourages the Northwest Arkansas Times to join the ranks of those newspapers that practice inclusivity in spite of state laws that aren't quite there yet.